|
| Français | Main | Biography | Bike | Races | FAQ | News | Sponsors | Gallery | Contact |
Latest News2011November 6/11: Under the category brilliant performance; Clara Hughes (road and track), Marie-Hélène Prémont (mountain bike), Sarah Biron (BMX), Dominique Rollin (road and track), Léandre Bouchard (mountain bike), Michaël Beaudoin (BMX), and Marie-Ève Croteau (Paracycling), were honored in the competitive category ATHLÈTE PAR EXCELLENCE. October 26/11: Peter Vallance, Rocky Mountain's Sports Marketing Manager said;"We're really excited about how the Factory Team is shaping up for next year. Not only are we confident that MHP is heading to the Olympics and will be a regular World Cup podium threat, we also have three of the top four U-23 men in Canada. Rocky Mountain has a long history of developing Canada's best mountain bike athletes, and 2012 will be no different." September 3/11: Marie was fairly constant throughout the race, moving into ninth place after the start loop, a place she retained after the first lap, slipping back and then regaining it again at the end of the third, fourth and fifth laps. "I'm really happy, it was a good race for me," said Marie, able to ignore the bad crash on the course during training a week previous. The impact of that crash was hard enough to cause severe bruising and explode the CO2 cartridge in her jersey pocket. After she injured her back, Marie could not go back in the saddle for four days. "I was still banged up. I even thought I could maybe not be racing. Today, I'm really happy to have a top 10." Marie had a case of jitters after the crash. "Yesterday, I managed to do the route in full. The rest of the week, I had only done small pieces because I was hurt and because there were places I was not ready to go." Unfortunately, she fell on her side in the first lap in the race. "I had to stop because I had back spasms. But I managed to loosen up my nerve and I got going again," she said, adding that she even had fun later. "I felt good. I have not suffered from the altitude or had problems breathing. " Marie also welcomes the success of her teammates on the Canadian delegation. "We had a good season, Catharine, Emily and myself. We were dominant in the ranking of the World Cup and we end with a flourish at the World Championships." Fourth in the World Cup, Marie was also glad for Catharine. "She ended up a force at the World Cup by winning the last two events. This is her year and she deserves the title of World Champion." The Rocky Mountain-Maxxis team member is excited for next season. "It's nice to see that we are well positioned for the Olympic year to come." (Team video report) August 31/11: August 20/11: "I had a good start and then I suffered a lot from heat and altitude," stated Marie. "I was trying to calm myself, but I had trouble breathing. I also felt a little dizzy, making steering more difficult, so I had to be a little more cautious on the descents. That said, I'm happy with my race because I fought to the end and my legs could obtain a better result in other circumstances." As Marie said, the course of Val di Sole is well suited to pure climbers. "This is where there is the greatest vertical drop and at the top of each climb, it goes down right away, which makes it difficult to recover." Marie will remain in Europe to complete her preparations for the World Championships which will be run on September 3, in Champery, Switzerland. (Freecaster Replay) (Interview) (Team video report) August 14/11: "It has not been very good. I got up this morning and I was not feeling very well. After a lap, I began to have heart burn and nausea. I didn't know if I should stop or continue. As I did not want to lose too many points in the standings, I decided to continue," said Marie, who moves from third to fourth place overall after the race, just 10 points behind Irina Kalentieva in 3rd. "It was more a race against myself. I struggled to push back, especially on the flat, and boost myself since my energy level was quite low," Marie added. "I really struggled to finish the race. In a sense, I'm happy because I'm in the top-10 and the time difference with others is not huge." In other circumstances, Marie would have enjoyed the race in Nove Mesto. "I loved this course. It was very technical. There was a lot of climbs and roots. And the atmosphere was great. It certainly helped me to keep going until the end," said Marie. (Freecaster Replay) July 16/11: July 9/11: "It was a good race, the course was fast. I was caught in a group and I could not break free because the girls weren't pushing," Marie said. "When I broke out in the third lap, I tried to return to the front of the race, but I had a cramp and I was overtaken by Langvad on the last lap," said Marie. The 4th place finish maintains Marie's 3rd place overall position at 630 points and extends the points lead over 4th place to 48 points. (Freecaster Replay) (Interview) (Team video report) July 2/11:
On the last lap, Marie had to fight at all times to try to take fourth place. Early in the final lap, Marie applied power to try to outrun the Czech Katerina Nash (Luna), while Austria's Elisabeth Osl was only 10 seconds behind the duo. "In the woods, before the descent of Beatrice, I made a mistake and I went over my handlebars," said Marie. "In the crash, I hit my knee, but I did not panic. When Elizabeth passed me, I remained calm, although she also wanted to finish in the top-5. It was a struggle from beginning to end and I did not give up. The most difficult years are behind me and I'm really happy." Osl thought to widen the gap, which didn't happen. "I thought I was the strongest of the three, and I have a lot of fans here and it helped on the climbs," said Marie. Pendrel's victory is far from displeasing to Marie, who gave her a hug on the podium: "I said last week that I wanted to hear the Canadian National anthem after the race, then you are done!" Marie concluded in jest. She will be at the Windham World Cup next week in the State of New York, last year at this event, Marie finished second to Catharine Pendrel. (Freecaster Replay) (Hilights and Interview) (Interview) (Team video report) May 29/11: Julie Bresset won the race in 1:28:59, followed by Catherine Pendrel in second and Eva Lechner in third. Marie was very close to achieving her first medal podium of the season in the World Cup. "It was a very fast race. I stayed up at the front for a long time. I was so close to third place! The Italian and I rode together in the last two laps. I just couldn't pass her at the end ", said Marie. "I'm still happy because I had a great race. I had a very good start and I was in on it from beginning to end. I was comfortable on my bike and I felt good. I'm approaching the best with this top 5 finish. My fitness has improved and bad luck seems to go away. So it's very encouraging! " "This is a very good result for me," said Marie. "My goal is to win the next round in Mont Ste Anne, so I am still building for that. I was with the leaders until Catharine and Julie attacked, and after that I was fighting for third place until the very end. This is very good for my confidence." The fourth round of the World Cup mountain bike will be held at Mont Sainte Anne in July. In preparation, Marie will race in the next round of the Canada Cup next week in Barrie, Ontario. (Freecaster Replay) (Interview) May 22/11: "I couldn't do anything to avoid it," said Marie. "I fell in the rocks while running quite high, so many riders went past me. I bashed up my butt, but I got back on the bike to climb back up through the ranks." Marie quickly realized that her troubles were not over when she got going again, the rear derailleur had been damaged, "I could only use two gears to change speeds, and I could use the big ring. I managed to catch the group and maintain a good speed." "I really felt good today. It's a shame because I think I could have finished in the top 5, by analyzing the race, I realize that I had great time at each round, unfortunately. On the positive side, this is encouraging for next week because I felt really good on my bike." (Freecaster Replay) April 23/11: "It's a pretty technical course," said Marie. There are several climbs especially early in the course and they have added more technical areas with rocks compared to two years ago. This is a course that requires good physical shape." Marie was riding in the top 10 for most of the race after having a good start from eighth. "As there is still snow in Quebec, I could not train like I wanted," said Marie, "But as the season progresses I'll be more physically fit." This race also marked the beginning of the selection process for the 2012 Olympic mountain bike team. "I decided that I wanted to compete in the London Olympics because I love what I do. I know it will not be easy because Catharine and Emily are also getting good results." (Freecaster Replay) (Team video) April 23/11: April 20/11: April 14/11:
"The heart is still there, I have the passion. And even if I returned from China with a medal, I think I would have continued." When Marie asked Raymond Dutil to continue their partnership, her request was warmly received. "We're very proud that Marie-Hélène will be teaming up with us again this season. She has been a part of the Procycle/Rocky Mountain family since the very start. She is an exemplary ambassador for our high-performance Rocky Mountain bicycles," commented the president of Procycle/Rocky Mountain. "Her determination, discipline, kindness, and social involvement set her apart from the crowd, both at international competitions and in everyday life."
March 26/11: News Archives |
|||||||||
|
